Joe Holod, Life in Alaska

Tax Cuts

2010-12-09T18:11:00.001-08:00

I Just posted this on Facebook:

$248.6 billion of individual income taxes were collected in 2007. Our population is roughly 300 million people - this includes the elderly, working people, children and infants. That means the 'cost' per person in income taxes is just un...der $900 a year, per person. That would mean that a couple with 3 kids would cost $4500 a year. Fact is, most Americans don't paid their 'fair share' of taxes because the rich do for you.

If you're not paying your 'fair share' every year, you you have no right to complain when those who are paying your share get a tax cut.

A Recent Self-Relevation

2010-03-15T00:50:00.000-07:00

"Comfort is the Father of Procrastination."

A Few Recent Thoughts

2009-12-25T02:24:00.001-08:00

First thing's first. I think Netflix should offer another premium option to be able to stream anything that's not already streamed. Maybe limit to two a day or something - it's the only way they'll ever be able to compete with cable and satellite providers (with the exception being those folks who watch live sports). I love to watch streaming Netflix on my PS3 - everything I've seen is of acceptable quality. Unfortunately, some things I've seen look better on a PC than on the PS3. This, I'm sure, will improve with time. As another premium add-on package, Netflix could offer streaming shows a day or two after they air. Likely? Probably not for years - most networks already host their own ad-driven streaming shows on their respective websites (and these use technologies not compatible with my PS3, and also, there are commercials). I can't get cable where I live and satellite isn't a good choice, either. I'm just trying to maximize the potential of my 10mbit connection!

I just feel like writing

2009-11-10T00:51:00.000-08:00

So I haven't really written anything longer than 160 characters for a long time. I don't know why that is - I'd like to think that I just haven't had time, or, busy doing other things. I haven't been in the mood? Maybe the reason is that have been letting my mind drift. Probably the biggest reason is that I haven't read any books or even any complete stories in the paper. I used to like writing about vampires, but now it's way to mainstream and impossible to be original. Don't get me wrong - I love me some True Blood, but the teenie-bopper hype for Twilight is quite nauseating, there is some pretty bad acting in it, and it's written for teenage girls - it's not bad, but it's not for me.

I've developed a type of 'rain dance' to encourage the weather to bring us some snow so I can get out and run some dogs. Been running on the gravel roads around here, so I'm stuck with two options: running lots of short, 14-15 mile runs, or running fewer, longer 20-26 mile runs. As soon as we get some snow the trail will be easier on their feet, and as soon as we got a lot of snow we can just run out of the house and not have to truck anymore.

Mainstream media has been driving me nuts. I can't even watch it anymore, because the stuff the news that they create is usually ridiculous. There's no point. I haven't had TV for a while, and these days I don't hardly read news online or listen to the radio like I used to. It seems that the media is becoming more liberal and further from reality, likely because the general public voted the most radical President in the history of the United States. In the 60's we called people like the President what they were - communists. What happened? Since when did we stop loving our country and start hold out our empty hands expecting everything for free? If you choose to live a crazy life and smoke, and drink, and take other huge risks in life, then why the hell shouldn't you have to pay more for healthcare? It's not "the government's fault for letting" you. You're less healthy than the rest of us and boatloads of you think you should be taken care of for free. Get a clue. Take care of yourself.

This is why I probably don't write much anymore - all I do is rant about the same stuff over and over. It's boring for anyone to read and in the end, it really doesn't make me feel any better. I should probably start to focus on the smaller scale, and try to effect the things that I can touch.

I love the irony that 30 Rock has to offer. It's actually pretty funny. Alec Baldwin's character is gotta be on of my favorite on tv.

That's all for now.

My Brain Is Hungry

2009-10-16T00:37:00.000-07:00

Lately I've been going through a bit of a nervous breakdown. The things I usually enjoy I'm not, and I haven't been able to relax at all. I've been easily frustrated and highly irritable, which are both unusual since I usually have so much patience. I've been thinking a lot about it and I'm starting to think that my brain is hungry. There are things my brain needs that my daily schedule will not allow.

I just figured out that lately I've been on this never-ending quest to become completely self-sufficient. I tend to dive head-first into new things. Example: this summer the transmission in my car died. Instead of paying the shop $2800 to replace it, I found a wrecked car and replaced my automatic trans with a manual - in my driveway. And before that I'd only done oil changes and brakes. But now if I ever have trouble with the car, I know that I can replace an axle, transmission, or an entire engine while on the side of the road.

Normally things that I'm good at I can't concentrate on. I've misspelled every 8th word so far, and usually I'd notice it on my own a little better. Yeah, maybe my brain is going through an OS update. There are tons of things that I want to do.

Introducing SpaceDuds

2009-04-20T01:41:00.000-07:00

I'd just like to take a quick moment to tell everyone about my new website, SpaceDuds. You can see it at http://spaceduds.blogspot.com/

I look forward to seeing your comments on the new site! I'm also looking for folks to help contribute content. If there's something you'd like to see, let me know!

Iditarod Restart 2009 - Willow, Alaska

2009-04-18T02:29:00.001-07:00

This is a video I made. Hope you like it!

Man Does Not Warm The Earth

2009-03-28T20:01:00.000-07:00

Below is my response to an article from green.foxnews.com that was originally written by t he London Times. Click Here to see the article.

_______________________________________________________________________________

I recently read that Scientists who don’t put up outrageous claims rarely receive much grant money, because apparently real science isn’t exciting enough.

Dr. Craig Loehle is a real scientist who completely recreated the climate record for the past 2,000 years, just after he discovered (or remembered from third grade) that there are many other things that effect the annual growth of trees (like rain, floods, direct sunlight, and living next to a bigger tree). It was warmer around 900 A.D. than it is today. That’s a proven fact.

On another note, why are warmer global temperatures even a problem? Crops grow better. People tan better. There’s less snow, and sometimes more rain (again, great for those crops AND good for preventing droughts).

One could argue that warmer global temperatures will reduce the amount of CO and CO2 in the atmosphere because all of the trees grow better and more trees will grow, thereby increasing Earth’s ability to remove CO2 from the air.

This is one of Mark Levinn’s favorite questions to ask whining greenie weenies: What’s the number one greenhouse gas?

Water Vapor.

Thanks for listening.

Dr. Loehle: http://www.worldclimatereport.com/index.php/2008/02/11/a-2000-year-global-temperature-record/

Water Vapor: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenhouse_gas_emissions

Obama Plays Dirty

2009-01-29T00:19:00.000-08:00

I just read an article about President Obama's recent visit to the White House press core offices. The article, found here on the Fox News website, was written by the AP. It's pretty obvious that Obama intends to continue what he started on the campaign trail - make the Press love him.

The article talks about how he headed down to the press offices to say hello to everyone and be casual, and that he wasn't there to field any serious questions. But he apparently made a few disapproving comments in reference to who had the bigger desks and why, saying "This is worse than the Middle East here -- who's sitting where and all that stuff." For a politician who has publicly spoken out about his personal disapproval for certain media outlets and their members, and urges forth legistation that attempts to publicly silence those individuals, it makes one wonder who he wants a smaller desk for in the press core office of the White House.

What bothers me most, though, is how President Obama continues to manipulate the media into liking him more. Granted, every President attempts to improve their public image through the eyes of the media, but Obama is already going further out of his way to do so than any before him. He's really some kind of expert. In the press core, sneaky comments like "I've got to say, it's smaller than I thought," hints that he pities the press and that he intends to make their situation better. Way to be their buddy, Mr. President. How moral is that?

Does it surprise anyone that a man whose recent peers, to include people like Gov. Blagoyovich, likes to play dirty politics everywhere he can? What kind of Drama Queen did all those idiots vote for? I'll start saying to the libs now what I'll be ear-to-ear about in 4 years (keep in mind I train dogs): What did you do! (And then I rub their nose in the huge heap they've landed us all in.)

On another note, I went gun shopping today and I'm going gun buying tomorrow.

If you're still reading and you find yourself nodding, you're a great American.

Cheney, We're Going To Miss You

2009-01-04T13:37:00.000-08:00

Vice President Dick Cheney is on his way out of office along with President George W. Bush. We're going to miss them both. I haven't paid much attention to Dick Cheney, though there are a few things that are drawing my attention to him. Namely, he seems to be a man who is blatantly honest and calls it like it is. From telling Senator Lehey to go fuck himself, to voicing his disagreements with President Bush as well as their own Republican party, he's not afraid to speak his mind. This is a man that we can hope remains in politics, as men like him are few and far between.

President Bush and Vice President Cheney, thank you for serving our country in these most desparate of times. We're going to miss you.

~Joe Holod

Happy Holodays

2008-12-27T03:28:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas to Everyone,

And a Happy New Year!

Politics?

2008-11-09T21:27:00.000-08:00

So it seems that the more and more I think about what's happened in the last week, the more upset I become. I'm a pretty mellow person, so for the time being I need to consider whether or not it's worth getting all fired about things that I don't necessarily understand. Looking back, the rants that I've authored are little more than that - rants. The type of rants that continue on about a specific topic without offering examples or solutions. I don't like ranting with no solution - I call people who do that Whiners.

It may be best that I begin to play a role in my community as an observer, and decide as I go along about the individual issues that matter to me and which way to side with them as I become more and more involved. It just amazes me with how much time is spent dealing with semantics.

I think that the decisions made right here at home locally have a much greater and immediate effect on my life than the issues we're having on a more national level. I'm also coming to realize that if I want to make any sort of a difference, I need to start right here on a local level.

Eddie Burke Post

2008-10-25T00:56:00.000-07:00

So I listen to Eddie Burke because he's funny, but mostly he's really smart. I saw a post on his blog today about giving $425,000 per adult to the people. Actually, the math was off and it was supposed to be $425. Anyway, here's a link to the original post. It has to be approved by a moderator, and I'm sure it will be, but anyway, below is my response:
______________________________________________________________________________________

Alright, so the math may be off on his post. I just can't honestly believe that companies that make bad decisions get helped by the government like this. If you make $85 billion in horrible decisions then you shouldn't be in business anymore. De-regulation really shows us which companies in our Country have the self-control to make it and which ones don't.

We're talking about an industry with many major players who rely on the government to give them rules to protect themselves, and just as soon as those rules are slackened and begin to let free market reign - as it should - the same players blame the government for their own bad decisions. De-regulation is the way to demonstrate which are the smart businesses and which are the dumb ones. If you can't ride an investor's bike once the training wheels are off, then go do something else.

I am completely opposed to this bailout. We can see (especially after today, Friday the 24th) how the idea of this bailout effects faith in the market - people just don't trust a market that can't sustain itself. Folks will trust the market a lot more knowing that the Free Market system will protect us from situations like this on it's own - companies like AIG that make poor financial practices will have to close their doors and will NOT be around to lose investers' money again. It's PRETTY SIMPLE.

Granted, $425 per person, or even $1,000 per person won't get the economy out of this slump (like we saw in June). But at least something like this would put this money back where it belongs - in the hands of The People.

Thinking about this just gets me all fired up, and I think this should be on a ballot on November 4th under the title "How to spend $700 Billion." Choice A, proceed with proposed bailout. Choice 2, give $3,500 to every NON-ALIEN, tax-paying adult in our country (that's $700 billion divided by 200 million adults, if my math is right). Choice 3??? Choice 4??? There are a lot of different things we can do with that money, but in the end, it belongs back in our hands. This amount of money could pay $7,000 to working couples on the brink of foreclosure from losing their homes. It could help a single parent pay 3-6 months of amortgage or rent. If they really want to revive the economy and the housing market, that would be the closest to a sure thing I've hear about.

Obama's right, we need change. But he's completely wrong about how - we need to give money back to the people and not the other way around. If he actually gets voted in, I'll be investing in Gold and in chains for my chainsaw because I know I won't be able to pay for heating oil. And if he wins, God help us all.

~Joe Holod

What's writing all about?

2008-10-07T00:45:00.001-07:00

I suppose I can't speak for everyone, but for me, I'm still trying to figure out what writing is all about. In fact, I'm sure that the reasons I write have change and will change over the years, so all I can write about is Me, right now. And in now way do I consider myself a writer, I'm just a guy who likes to write sometimes.

The first thing about writing that does it for me is that one perfect sentence, or perfect paragraph, that perfectly describes the message or scene that I'm trying to convey. It's that grouping of words that describes exactly what I'm feeling or thinking.

There a lot of other things I like about writing. I don't feel that many people realize this, but there really are no rules in writing. Perhaps a writer has his or her own rules that they choose to follow, but when it comes down to it there really is no right or wrong way to write. You can write about whatever topic you choose. And if you want to follow conventional sentence rules, you never start a sentence with 'and.' But if you want to choose your own style, then you can start a sentence with 'But' and there's nobody who can tell you that it's right or wrong. Writers can even create their own words, like Shakespeare did, and that can be alright as well. So many writers use so many styles and, generally, it's up to the readers, the target audience, to decide if they like it or not, or if they care to read it, and if they read it then I suppose you're doing alright, even if you don't care to use short sentences.

Writing is freedom.

I am Ironman

2008-10-02T00:24:00.001-07:00

So I just saw Ironman tonight and I thought it was pretty sweet. Here's a guy who doesn't like the direction of the world, mainly the United States (as well as some of it's corporate buddies who get government slack) and takes matters into his own hands. I think we can all take something important from this film. I'm referring to the valuable lesson that says that if you don't like the direction you see the world going in, then you need to change it. Don't stand around and wait for someone else to try to so that you can just jump on the bandwagon, what I'm trying to say is BE THAT GUY (or GIRL). Be a leader. Step up and say what you feel. Don't lie about your beliefs to fit in, be yourself. Don't conform to conform. Don't take others' words as truth about things, be smart and find things out for yourself.

"Those consistently relying on others for information open themselves to the biased truths and half facts of the members of society whom insist upon forcing their will unto others through fear, lies, and manipulation, thus becoming pawns of the very game they criticize but are too weak to correct."

~Joe Holod on Blogger.com, October 1st, 2008

Alright, so that probably will make whichever book I write first. So I made it a quote. I love it's simplicity, and I think it really sums things up for most of those who live in the world today. Title that 'I Am Ironman.' I guess that's all for today. I would highly recommend Ironman, rent it today.

Late Night Ramblings: 2007 Budget

2008-09-30T04:11:00.000-07:00

I was thinking about some things earlier today and I came up with an interesting question: at what point (in income) do you stop giving the government and start being just dependent? I mean, we all pay taxes that go towards roads, schools, and things like that. But which taxpayers at the lower end of the brackets are getting more than they actually pay for? I just couldn't come up with any sort of an idea. And so, would these people be considered freeloaders? Certainly some of us contribute more to the government than others, I just wanted to know how much of it I actually paid for, I suppose. Or perhaps discover whether or not the tangible government property is more mine than someone else's, or less mine than some others. Or would the 'one vote per person' system mean that we all own the same amount?

Here's another thought, while I'm on taxes and things like this. The next time I file income taxes, I want a detailed receipt detailing what my money is spent on, per the hundredth of a penny. We'll put the biggest items at the top of the list, such as military, transportation.

Ok, I just found a few different pie charts about government spending, since everyone has their own take and everyone's accountant apparently has a different opinion. This one is on Wikipedia for the year 2007. So here we go: Last year the federal government spent just over $2.8 trillion. That's $2,800,000,000,000. And let's say, for basic example, that my income taxes, soc, medicare, and medicaid last year I paid $4,000. I contributed to just over a billionth of the national budget, so that's not bad. Now let's see how much of that went to things that don't help me whatsoever.

About 43.59% went to health care. This does not help me. Social security, medicare, medicaid and State's programs for children's insurance. That's a lot of money (only $1.2 trillion, but whose counting?), especially considering that I paid about $1700 out of my pocket for nothing. I could have spent that $1700 to pay off the credit cards that have been bought by the collections companies who are owned by the banks that were almost about to close, until this week when the federal sabotage-out kicked in and now they're done altogether. Now they're just closing. So who do I owe that money to now? Good Job, Federal Government. The federal government shouldn't meddle with things they don't understand.

About 9.1% went to unemployment, welfare, and 'other mandatory spending.' What the hell does that mean, exactly? Anyway, I did participate in our state's unemployment program last year, though here in Alaska we have unemployment insurance, so I believe that I was not contributed to by this 9.1%. So over half the money I paid last year in taxes was not spent on me.

The DoD had about 16% of the budget spent on itself last year. That's for our soldiers and lot of important stuff. And a lot of unimportant stuff. This number is far too small - we need to be able to supply our soldiers with bullet proof vests and our borders need to be protected. We could be reallocating a lot of money wasted by the DoD playing real-life Space Invaders and NASA forgetting simple English-Metric conversions when bombing Mars, and putting these dollars towards useful projects. Or better yet, not taking the money from us to begin with.

I won't get into the rest of the budget, I think I've made a pretty large point. When I file my taxes, I should be able to decide how much I pay and what my money gets spent on. There should be a line for every thing on there. I'd throw some money towards finding some cheap alternative fuels. But when NASA makes a $125 million mistake and then asks for more money, guess what guys: my dollars are elsewhere because you proved to me you're incompetent. If a particular road that I drive on every day is in really horrible shape, then I should be able to say that 'I want this $500 to go towards repaving the Parks Hwy between mile 52 and mile 70' for example.

These are the things we need to be telling our legislators, but they don't listen. They're too caught up on getting a vote than to actually spend our money for us in ways that help us out. We need to rely on individuals for the budget, not a bunch of suits.

Also, the word 'couldn't' is not in the blogger spellchecker for some reason, fyi. Neither is Wikipedia, or everyone's.

Conservative Rant

2008-09-26T23:49:00.000-07:00

What if Barack Obama becomes the next President of the United States? Will we give all of our hard earned money to poor people and people in other countries, so that us working class citizens can go day to day wondering now we're going to buy fuel for a cars to get to work tomorrow or to heat our homes next week? The answer is Yes.

You see, I've been paying extra attention lately to the way people behave and act, and the stories they tell. From these experiences, often with complete strangers, I predict their political bias as being either liberal or conservative. And without asking or baiting a conversation, I usually find out before the meeting is over, because right now everyone wants to tell you what they thing about Sarah Palin (this is Alaska, after all). I challenge you all to try this on your own, but hear this: I've been right 100% of the time so far. That tells me something. That tells me that people are not as 'on the fence' as they claim to be. But it also tells me that others can accurately guess that I'm conservative. That can be a scary thought. Earlier this week I was in an area of town that is known to be a very liberal area, and I wasn't able to strike up a conversation with anyone for the life of me. I was just being myself, and it was as if people just spoke to me through their actions, "Oh, you're one of those." And did I waver? Nay. But I did stop to think that I'm not this way toward others, at least as far as I can tell.

So here's the breakdown: people who are whiney, lazy thinkers, people who cry for help in the simplest situations, expect things for free, and people who say everyone should care about less fortunate people as much as they do, are liberals. These are the people who say "Oh, this and that should be illegal." These are the folks that complain about a problem and offer no solution. I'm talking about the folks who try to fix the small little issues of huge problems, then behave as if they had solved the entire issue. The people I'm taking about are the ones who like to have more laws and rules because they're not smart enough to take care of themselves. Don't forget how Liberals are limiting our personal freedoms, including those freedoms guaranteed to us by the Bill of Rights as well as the Constitution. They want government intervention in everything. They want to further enable the government to watch over us and eavesdrop on us, raping us of any sense, or protection, of privacy.

The conservatives, on the other hand, are usually more independent. We want to keep the money we earn and spend it on what we decide to. We want less government control because we know how bad they screw everything up. We know that the world operates as a better place when the decisions of individuals are not controlled and ruled by groups of politicians, elected by 'electoral' votes, who take complete advantage of situations and eventually lose any and all sense of reality. We're the people who own guns for protection because we know we can't rely on the government to protect us from much, and we realize that one day we may need to protect ourselves from the government itself (remember 1776?). And we don't want to give away money to other parts of the world when most of us are struggling to make ends meet, and we lose huge portions of our paychecks to things that don't help us. It's not the government's job to help us, it's our responsibility to help ourselves. We're the ones who believe in National Sovereignty and in only letting qualified individuals into our Country. We don't like the idea of letting people from other places of the world coming here for free and living off of our tax dollars as they contribute nothing (taking illegal employment in picking fruit and vegetables does NOT contribute to our country in a positive way).

There are so many things in this world that we need to just say "NO" to, and Conservatives are the ones standing up and doing it. Liberals are the ones feeling sorry for people who can't help themselves. Now, usually when someone can't help him or her self, it's because they're too lazy and too accustomed to getting things handed to them by people like these very Liberals I'm speaking about. If they're starving because they're too stupid to move to where there's water, then Darwinism comes into play the way nature intended. Liberals are the ones who pity the homeless drunks on the sides of the streets and give them money, and that's just fine by me. But don't try to pass legislation to 'help these people' by giving them my money. If they could be helped, they would've helped themselves a long time ago. Wake up already! If people are warned to leave an area because of an impending doom approaching, then LEAVE THE AREA! Don't sit around and wait, and just about lose your life, and then cry for help or complain when it doesn't come 'soon'. "Danger is coming. You must leave if you value your life" - I think that is help enough. Again, if people can't help themselves, then it's time for the rest of us to move on.

Disclaimer: this is pretty rough but I'm posting it anyway. Keep in mind, what I am conveying are general thoughts of mine. If you consider yourself a conservative but disagree with 99% of what I said, then (a) I'm sorry, no offense and (b) you may want to reevaluate what you call yourself.

Elton John

2008-09-23T02:01:00.001-07:00

So I made a comment earlier to a friend that I thought Elton John was way under-rated. I was corrected once she enlightened me that in his time, in fact, Elton was a HUGE hit. I think he's genius (as a musician, let's be clear on that point.) Tiny Dancer? Love it. I don't what what there is about it, but i think it's that 'reminiscent' feeling. You know, that feeling you get when you watch The Sandlot, or anything else that makes you remember back to 'The Good Ol' Days.' Musically, I was born about thirty years too late. I guess I just have an old soul.

Who is Mac for?

2008-09-22T00:20:00.001-07:00

Alright, so there's a lot of people switching over to Mac. But why? Is it because nobody wants Vista? I think that for a lot of people, this is true. And for these people (especially those who never fully adjust to osX), as soon as the next version of Windows is released they'll be switching back over.

Also, has anybody seen the 'I'm f***ing Matt Damon' movie? Or the Ben Affleck answer to it? I just found on youtube the Obama version. Now, I won't be voting for this clown, let's be clear on that. But I do love youtube videos, lol. You can watch it here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skIlZflDs9Y&feature=related.

Alright

Ok Ok, Last One...

2008-09-17T02:08:00.001-07:00

Three of Sarah Palin’s five kids came out sideways - she never flinched.

Sarah Palin

2008-09-17T01:52:00.000-07:00

So they decided to make our Governor the Republican Vice Presidential Nominee for this year's election. I'm pretty happy about it, but that means we may lose Sarah Palin for 4 years (or 8? or 16?) but she'll be back.

I found a really kool little site tonight hosting fun facts about Sarah Palin, it's called PalinFacts.com and it's a fun read, even if you don't know anything.

Here's a few of my fav's from the site:

When Sarah Palin booked a flight to Europe, the French immediately surrendered.
Sarah Palin’s image already appears on the newer nickels.
Queen Elizabeth II curtsied when she was introduced to Sarah Palin
Jesus has a bracelet that says, “WWSPD?”
Death once had a near-Sarah Palin experience.
In the original version, He-Man had the power of Sarah Palin, but the writers felt this would make him way too powerful.
-Sarah Palin doesn’t need a gun to hunt, because she can throw a bullet through an adult bull elk.
Sarah Palin wants you to LEAVE BRITNEY ALONE!!!

And the list goes on and on forever! Go Sarah!

Firefox 3.0.1 on Linux AMD64

2008-09-17T01:16:00.000-07:00

So I installed the new Firefox 3.0.1 yesterday on my 64bit box, Driva 08 64. Runs good, however, the nspluginwrapper plugins for it don't seem to want to work for anything - so I have no Flash. And I've been overconfident in some things lately so when I installed the new Firefox i overwrote the existing installations. So I'll try and deal with it for a while, and see how patient I really am.

Decision to Blog More

2008-09-17T01:10:00.000-07:00

So I've made the important decision to blog more, and to read some blogs.

So I played with KDE4 today and so far I like what I see. I really enjoy being able to use OpenGL without using compiz or beryl. I'm using the metapackage with Mandriva '08, so I'm sure that there's more stable versions out by now. But I definitly like what I see.
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

Vista vs. Linux Rebuttal

2008-09-15T02:24:00.000-07:00

I've just finished reading a Vista vs. Linux post from ITVoir.com. Click Here to read it.

The author of this article had a few facts to get straight. The web site requires administrative approval for any comments, so mine may not make it to the site. But here is my response, in it's entirety:
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I respect your post, but your research couldn't have taken you any further from the truth.

Firstly, Linux has more software than Windows. Hands down. And it's mostly free software. Just because you can't name any software that runs on Linux doesn't mean there's less. And now, with virtualization i.e. VMWare and VirtualBox, not to mention Cedega and Wine, you can run most Windows software on top of Linux one way or another. You can even run Windows on top of Linux, and in fact, it runs faster this way than it runs natively.

Secondly, you stated that because Linux has the widest software support of any operating system that it is more 'vulnerable.' When Windows breaks, Microsoft waits until someone complains about it first. Then, they put a 'team' together to put together a patch. Next, the patch is distributed via Windows Updates. Linux, in contrast, is built on top of a more secure foundation, so there are fewer security flaws to begin with, and much less serious when they occur. And due to it's larger group of support programmers, it is usually fixed faster - MUCH faster - than Microsoft products. Let me put this idea into context for you - MasterLock makes conbination locks for lockers and toolboxes and etc. But without the combination for said lock, you can't open it - even if you know how every little part inside moves and interacts with the other moving parts.

Thirdly, Linux has support for WiFi. In fact, Linux has had support for the newer WPA security standards like TTLS before most Windows users had it - they had to wait for XP SP2.

In addition, the hardware you speak about with support for Vista is usually on the Expensive side of things, and Vista needs 2gigs of RAM to do anything worthwhile in a descent amount of time, whereas Linux runs everything from Graphing Calculators to Cell Phones to the Hardon Collider. It's a much more versatile computing solution.

Windows Automatic Updates are some of the biggest money makers for people in the Computer Service Industry. Microsoft consistently puts patches through that are under tested and unreliable, and they often render user's machines unusable. Microsoft can't even seem to make up their minds about what they think people should have, might want to have, and must have. Remember Internet Explorer 7? First it was an optional update, then it was Recommended (i.e. automatically installed), and then for a while it wasn't even obtainable from the Windows Update site. And lets not forget that Microsoft is known to place Spyware on your computer, and if you've run Windows Update in the last 18 months, then YOU HAVE IT.

Again, on this next one, your facts are clouded. You CAN INDEED set Linux up for automatic back up. That is a Fact. You have much more control over it as well.

Overall, it would seem that from reading your article, you've probably never used an Operating System besides Windows Vista. Windows Vista is so horrible, in fact, that the Mac market is booming with sales increases of over 50% a year. Fortune 500 companies have all but halted any and all upgrade plans for the time being - they've decided that it would be more practical to keep their machines with Windows 2000 than to change over to Windows Vista - mainly, because of Networking and Usability issues. And, the major PC dealers had to stop selling machines with Vista Home Basic because they said it was 'Almost Unusable.' Microsoft has since decided to bump-up their next Operating System release by almost 2 years in a desperate effort to reclaim the market.

Microsoft has done wonderful things for the PC industry, and without them, fewer people throughout the world would have PCs or know how to use them. As a PC Service Technician with plentiful experience in Windows 95, 98, ME, 2000, XP, 2003, and Vista, and as a die-hard Linux user and Mac admirer, I can honestly say that Windows Vista is the absolute Worst Operating System ever compiled.

Thanks for the post,
~Joe

The Answer to Rising Fuel Costs

2008-04-06T19:28:00.000-07:00

Here in America we are very dependent on fuel. Everything we do in our lives is linked to burning fuel - driving to work, watching TV, heating our homes - the list is endless. While we can attempt to reduce our reliance on fuel - as many are - it's impossible to eliminate our need for fuel from our daily lives.

Most fuels are made manufactured from oil. There are only a few countries

The United States doesn't produce enough oil for itself. We import well over half of the oil we consume. This gives the countries that we import from far too much power, both politically and economically.

There are many things that contribute to the price of imported oil, one of them being the expense in getting the oil here to begin with. In addition, the foreign oil companies often form cartels. Agreeing on common prices and charges, these cartels eliminate competition and keep prices high.

The answer to lowering the cost of fuel is minimizing the role of foreign companies in the equation. These outside oil companies have no current reason to offer the U.S. competitive prices because we can't go anywhere else for the oil; they know we're stuck. American oil companies have no incentive to charge less than the foreign companies because they know all the oil they produce will be bought anyway.

America needs to drill more oil. There are many untouched reserves throughout our country, including many here in Alaska. At the urge of environmentalists, among other groups, the U.S. government has so heavily regulated the industry that it is almost impossible for domestic oil production to grow, and in fact, oil production is shrinking. In 2006 the U.S. produced 5,103,000 barrels of crude oil per day, representing the lowest domestic production number since 1949. In 2005 we consumed 20,802,000 barrels per day, the highest in recorded history.

It is now too expensive in our country to open a new refinery - America's newest oil refinery was built in 1976. The number of U.S. refineries in operation as of 2007 was 149

Draft - Effects of Personal Responsibility on the Economy: A Layman's Point of View

2008-04-01T02:43:00.000-07:00

Roman Pickle
I've recently found myself in a bit of a Roman pickle. If you disagree with my views that's not a good reason to stop reading. I'm not bashing others' ideas here, I'm trying to explain and justify my own. So, being a little to the right of most moderates, I have a difficult time finding people who share my opinions. I'll carry on now...

My Beliefs
I strongly believe that Capitalism is great. I don't believe the government should have a significant role in regulating our economy. Creative thinkers should have the freedom to pioneer their way into building innovative business models, and those daring enough to attempt such ventures should reap the benefits.

In a Socialist Society, these creative thinkers manage companies their country owns, if they're so lucky. They receive the same benefits as the guy running the same company across town. They both produce their goods and services to the exact specifications their government tells them to, never deviating, never experiment, never attempting development of a unique product. No chance to get ahead. If you work hard all day and the guy next to you naps the whole time, your paychecks are the same as one another. This model of society prevents personal ambition, creativity and invention. Countries like this do not advance technologically into the future. People don't have any individual voice. Socialist countries control what their people say and do, leaving them no freedom. What little money they pay you, they also tell you what you're allowed to buy with. But, if they get hurt or sick it's paid for. And if the government says you can go to college, they pay for it (but if they say you can't go, then you just can't go). I'm against Socialism for a lot of reasons I can't even think of, but perhaps primarily because it takes away personal responsibility and freedom.

Successful Business Models
When it comes to business, there are a few classic business models and ideas that are pure genius. First, vertical integration - what a wonderful thing. A great way to make a product cheaper is to minimize the number of hands (or companies, in this case) it passes through. Don't just make steel - first, mine the metals, then transport them, then refine them and produce steel products, then transport it to your customers - all yourself. The government today has legislation in place to prevent companies like this from forming.

Second, monopolies. Our government tries to prevent companies from being the sole supplier of a product. If there are two ladder companies in the country, and ladder company A wanted to buy ladder company B, thus becoming the only ladder company in the country, the government would try to stop this. The government believes this protects people from overly priced goods and lack of product choices. Well, Uncle Sam, if my ladder is a bit old and it's $5000 for a new one, guess what: I'll be keepin' that old one around for a little longer, or I'll form my own ladder company, because that's what free market competition is all about. And ladder company AB would realize that, so they wouldn't ever charge $5000 for a ladder to begin with. By allowing 2 companies to compete, keeping prices low and product quality down, the government is actually preventing smaller companies from forming because the market is overly competitive.

The US Government vs Monopolies: The 'Teach but don't Preach' model. UPS and FedEx both started as small delivery companies. Eventually they grew and grew, and they became as large as they could be by the late 70's. The USPS was the government's delivery company, and they were reliable and reasonable priced, but not always very fast. Airline Regulations in place prevented FedEx and UPS from growing further, thus maintaining the Postal Service's monopoly on most interstate deliveries. It wasn't until after airline deregulation in 1978 did FedEx truly enter the playing field as a competitor to the USPS, who now offers flat-rate deliveries 2nd and 3rd day across the US as a reasonably priced answer to UPS and FedEx.

The United States Government has a monopoly on retirement funds. While other companies exist, the US Government is the only entity in the country which requires you to pay into a specific retirement fund, thwarting any competition. They make Social Security mandatory - you must pay into it, regardless of if you already have a suitable fund set up elsewhere. It's not just a matter of requiring us to have a retirement fund set up, they even pick it for you and control it themselves. If they adopt a new policy you don't like you can't change companies, you're stuck. If I could instead take the equivalent amount of money from every paycheck and invest it in gold, mutual funds, and high-yield savings accounts I would have a much more fruitful retirement than what Social Security will be able to provide me. And on top of all that, I could retire when I chose to, not when the government tells me I can.

Third, Cartels. Cartels are created when an agreement is reached among companies to sell their similar or identical product for the same price as one another, thus giving the companies the appearance of market control. The pricing strategy could be cutthroat in order to remove other competitors from the market, and later raised very high once a higher level of market control is attained. Our government has outlawed cartels because they believe cartels will reduce market competition. Interestingly enough, the foreign countries who sell us oil are essentially a cartel, and we have little choice but to buy oil at the prices they set. Disturbingly, because of how our nation's laws are enforced, we cannot have any cartels to sell those countries goods. In effect, our government's infringements on our personal freedoms are preventing us from fairly competing on a global scale.

So this is supposed to be all about my Roman pickle, so here it is. As much as I am anti-socialist and anti-government control, I do believe I contradict myself. In terms of ideas, the government shouldn't protect them so tightly, because this prevents competition. It is the individual companies' responsibility to closely guard their secrets. Recently a man was charged with distributing a copy of a commercial video game that was not yet completed. The game company should have done more to protect itself, and after they were violated, it's their own responsibility to take legal action against the individual. He is now under house arrest.

Community Products
And so for the real pickle: if I support so strongly the right for companies to do as they please, in an economic sense, they why do I support the use of open-source software over commercial software? This is what I keep trying to explain to myself - not that I feel at all guilty about using open source, because I don't. As a Capitalism cheerleader is it odd to convey the idea that a group of individuals can create, maintain and manufacture a product that exceeds that of an entity motivated by profit? I'm not sure. Do I really contradict myself?

Perhaps nay. As possibly the most monopolistic company in our country at this time, Microsoft controls over 95% of the desktop OS market. While I applaud those capitalists that make it to the top, as Bill Gates has, I also applaud those who try to stand up to fight a giant. But Microsoft isn't competing against another giant, it's the little guys - over 1,000 people from more than 100 companies (and let's not forget the individuals) contribute the development of the just the linux kernel alone, not to mention the thousands of other great software that's out there, written by the community.

Personal Responsibility
I'm still trying to explain to myself how this isn't contradictory. Am I more for businesses or what? I think what it comes down to is that I'm for the freedom of everyone. While I don't think that government should regulate business as heavily as it does, it is the responsibility of the individual to see a monopolistic threat and do something about it, and not expect the government to protect them from it. With Freedom comes Personal Responsibility.

Part of that same Personal Responsibility says that if a company is doing something unethical, or at least something you don't like, then don't buy their product. Don't invest in a company that takes part in in questionable activities. On the flip side to that, if you see a company who is buying up it's suppliers and competitors and you think they're being unfair, then don't invest in them; if that same company stands to make investors tons of money, then it's your right to invest.

Familiar Example
So many Americans are naive to the capital control we carry as consumers. I can recall a pop culture example that many may be familiar with: near the beginning of the Iraq war in 2003 the Dixie Chicks spoke out against President Bush, claiming they were ashamed he was from Texas. After a public boycott of the Dixie Chicks' music, along with many radio stations pulling their tunes from the air, they would never again reach their previous level of success. Concert ticket sales were low, and in some cases, because local radio stations refused to advertise for the Dixie Chicks, some concerts were canceled altogether. The Dixie Chicks maintain that they were within their right to free speech. The lesson learned here is that if you upset consumers, whether by immoral and illegal activities, or just controversial comments, it affects the market. After the comment, President Bush hit the nail on the head when he summed it all up in an interview with Tom Brokaw, saying "...Freedom is a two-way street..."

Being Responsible for Yourself
These are interesting thoughts. Personal Responsibility; Freedom. They go hand-in-hand, but most people don't realize it. Perhaps people who don't want to be responsible for themselves think it's ok to give up personal freedoms? I have a survival-of-the-fittest mentality. If you can't be responsible for yourself and the things you do, then that's your problem. Don't lean on the government for support because you made poor decisions. Survival of the fittest - if you can't work, don't expect the government to feed you from other peoples' pockets.

Universal Health Care
Today I read a Reuters article about a recent poll, claiming this:

"More than half of U.S. doctors now favor switching to a national health care plan."

When I hear the term 'more than half' it implies that over half of the doctors in America have said, "Yes, I favor a universal health care system." And yet, I read on, only to find what half really means to these biased journalists.

"...Of more than 2,000 doctors surveyed..."

It makes one wonder. Are there only 4,000 doctors in America? How could 2,000 doctors be half? Of over 700,000 doctors in this country, how many groups were surveyed? Was this possibly the 8th or 9th group surveyed, but the first group giving the researchers results they wanted to hear or publish? What types of doctors were surveyed? Did the researchers specifically poll doctors who deal with uninsured, underinsured, and non-paying clientele? Again, it makes one wonder.

Take personal responsibility for yourself. If you want health care, then pay for health care. If you don't want to pay to take care of yourself, then just take care of yourself. Eat healthy foods. Don't smoke. Don't drink. Don't play tackle football without pads with your grandson's high school buddies.

I take pretty good care of myself. I don't drink often and I've never smoked, but with universal health care, I have to pay to care for people who do. In America we have the freedom to choose to have health care or not to. The proposal of having universal health care in this country takes away from our personal freedom. Since I'm healthy, I don't pay into a health insurance plan. That is a choice that I am free to make. If I was 10 years older and I had a 20 year smoking habit and a drinking problem, I may be more interested in paying into a health insurance plan.

The fact is, I don't want to pay to take care of an overweight 45 year old alcoholic with a two-pack-a-day habit who already has high blood pressure and his first heart attack under his belt, especially when we both pay the same amount for health insurance. If I'm going to pay to take care of someone's health, it's going to be my own. How many Americans, perhaps subconsciously, will let their health slide knowing that they have their health care paid for? And let's not overlook what universal health care has done for other countries - how overburden, for example, the health care industry is in Canada. And besides all that, do we really trust the government to run this?

Stay Free, America!

New Site!

2008-03-06T00:44:00.001-08:00

Hello Everyone, I just wanted to make a post telling people about my new web site, ScreamingHuskies.com is now up and available for everyone to see. We'll be adding a lot of content over the next couple of weeks, so make sure you check it out!

One Laptop Per Child and Microsoft

2007-12-06T14:08:00.000-08:00

The Scoop

In a blog post earlier this week, Microsoft has expressed interest in having it's Windows XP operating system run the XO, the $200 machine from One Laptop Per Child (OLPC). Currently, the XO is not capable of running XP due to hardware limitations - specifically, it only has a 1-gigabyte storage capacity. Microsoft is pushing OLPC to add a slot for an SD card, adding the 2 gigs of extra capacity that a slimmed-down version of XP would require. Currently, the XO runs a version of Red Hat Linux.

What OLPC Stands For

Upon a quick review of OLPC's website, it's pretty easy to tell where they stand on open-source software and hardware. Phrases about giving teachers and kids "the freedom to reshape, reinvent, and reapply their software..." and that they don't want "any ceiling imposed on those children who choose to modify their machines" make their stance very opaque. On their wiki, on of the five core principles they list is "free and open source."

What about Microsoft?

Firstly, the stuff that comes out of Redmond is about as closed-source as it gets. A "port of Windows XP to the OLPC XO" isn't a project they could make much money off of. After they throw it together and spit it out into the market, it would take a back shelf. Minimal bug fixes. Total insecurity. Don't believe me? Internet Explorer - need I say more?

Windows XP is an eight-year-old operating system, and last year was the first time that a budget computer ran it with any sort of speed. It's a monster, especially once we start talking about running off the XO's 433mhz processor. And let's not forget about running the anti-virus software required on Microsoft OS's. Of all the software options in the world, XP might be the absolute worst bang-for-the-megahertz choice for the XO. Besides, do we really want to run yesterday's software on today's hardware?

Linux Software on the XO

Red Hat Linux is one of the most stable operating systems of our day. Linux, in general, can be fine-tuned and ported to all things big and small. From cell phones and PDA's, to datacenters and supercomputers, Linux does it dependably. With Red Hat on hardware like the XO, you can enjoy the stability and security of a modern-day operating system.

We hear about security all the time but most users don't really understand what that means to them. Security is about not having your credit card numbers or you identity stolen. It's also about the millions and millions of viruses that Windows users deal with every day and they money they spend getting them off and keeping them off. We're trying to lead students and teachers of developing nations into technology, not repulse them. Most Linux users don't require an anti-virus because the OS is built around security.

The Business End

As a business decision, here's where Microsoft sits. If they are able to make any actual money off of this project, through product-liscensing, or whatever, it would have to be minimal before OPLC would even consider it. I'm convinced that Microsoft isn't motivated by making money from the OS itself (that's basically $0), they are instead driven by two things: selling other software for the machine like MS Office, and they're acquainting the future of developing nations with their product. It's about spreading their name (and steering users clear of open-source, for that matter), and it's about getting them ready for a lifetime BSOD's. This decision isn't about helping children, or helping third-world countries. And it's not about making money right now. It's about raping the people of these nations for money a year from now, and ten years from now - the very same people that this project is trying to help.

Microsoft, stop trying take advantage of people who need help - it's already bad enough that you litter our country with the garbage you call software.

The Writer's Strike

2007-11-28T18:41:00.000-08:00

The Writer's Strike that's going on right now: what's the deal? Over the last couple of years, the networks have started hosting streaming episodes of shows on their websites. These streamed shows include ads that generate revenue for the networks, though at present, writers do not receive any compensation for streamed shows. However, the writers want to be paid for their work.

The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers claims that it's too difficult to determine a method of paying writers for the new media right now. They say it would cost them too much. These are the basic facts.

Strikes are bad for everyone. Analysts are saying that if this strike goes on for long, a lot of our favorite shows will be postponed. How is this going to affect viewers? Some may watch a few more movies until their shows are back on. Some will watch re-runs, or a different show they like less. A lot of people will change their viewing habits completely, meaning that once the shows come back on the air, viewers won't ever turn them on again. Ratings for late-night shows, sitcoms, and prime-time series will be very low once they come back.

How much money do the writers stand to make with lower ratings? What about when the shows cancel? And when they're out of work?

As mentioned, one of the reasons the writers are 'losing' money is because of the internet. Ironically, because of the strike, the GOP debate this month will be on YouTube. This huge event will draw thousands of viewers to the internet, many for the first time. 'Click and Play' is much more convenient than making sure you're home and free at nine o'clock every Monday night. Once more people discover the ease of viewing news, shows and movies online, TV will be seeing even less viewers than ever. How deep of a hole are the writers willing to dig?

Carson Daly is resuming his show in spite of the strike. He is calling upon non-guilded writers to help with material. The Writers Guild of America is very disappointed with his decision, though I applaud him. His move may be more of a publicity stunt (Carson Daly has a show?), but I admire him. He's telling the guilded writers that he doesn't need them.

There are plenty of fantastic writers out there who aren't associated with a guild. How many lower-paid writers would be willing the cross the lines and join successful shows? I know I would - in a second, union or not. Strike or not. Each and every one of those writers is choosing not to work, so I suggest hiring people who want to work.

The Big Circle

2007-11-18T01:35:00.000-08:00

Last week I submitted this blog to Google (according to spell check, I just spelled blog and Google incorrectly). Tonight I thought I'd Google my name to see if the blog came up. It did not. And for those who couldn't guess, I don't have a very common last name. On the second page of the Google results, something interesting came up. It was a burial plot listing with my name on it. Joseph Holod, 1935-1991. That makes me feel like I need to put things into perspective. He died just after I came to be. Was he anything like me, or, rather, am I anything like him? I would doubt that there is another Joseph Holod right now. Is there always just one Joseph Holod at a time? If that's the case, then I wonder what the ones before I were like. Holod is a Czech name, and Joseph is Biblical name. I suppose it wouldn't take someone being an American immigrant to have the first name Joseph - the name has been around for over 2,000 years before the United States was even colonized. Joseph Holod's could have been around now for millennia! It makes one wonder. It's strange to try and come to turns with the idea that in the circle of life, you really aren't the first or the last.

Swimming 4-Wheelers and Frozen Berries

2007-11-14T21:13:00.000-08:00

Today I taught my 4-wheeler how to swim. Her name is Sasha. Some may call that a girl's name, but not the French. So I was driving around today with Sasha checking out some potential dog trails when I came across this creek that I drove through. No problem. From there I couldn't really find a trail, but there was this dried up creek bed that I drove in. There was a small sheet of ice there, but just some air underneath.

I was driving along, going slowly, obeying all laws of physics, and then SAWOOOOSH! Broke through the ice into 2 1/2 feet of water! It was an OUTRAGE! Sasha was STUCK! I was soaked from the knees down, and that's something that doesn't mix well when it's 18 degrees outside (Fahrenheit - yeah, that's cold).

Lucky for me, Sasha offsets her lame 3-wheel drive with a nice winch. Twenty-five minutes of some Joe-magic and I had Sasha free and we were rolling home! That drive back to the cabin may have been the coldest part of the entire fiasco, especially since my Carharts had a blowout earlier in the ordeal.

Things could've been worse, though. I was 2 miles from the nearest road. After hours in from of the wood stove I can finally laugh about it!

1408, Sam Jackson Beer, Scrubs

2007-11-13T02:18:00.000-08:00

So, 1408. Not too many scary movies have A-list actors in them. This one did. John Cusack was pretty good in it, too. I am personally not a fan of scary movies, AT ALL. I can't stand them. I actually hate them. There's usually no plot, they're usually very predictable, and usually lots of people die. Without ruining the movie for anyone, 1408 was not a typical scary movie. Plus, Samual L. Jackson was in there.

Have you seen the Chapelle Show where Dave does the pretend Samual Adams commercial? I keep imaging that in my head, the part when he's hollering "I'm Samual Jackson. This is how I talk!" Anyway, I thought it was pretty good.

And how about Scrubs? This is a show that walked into my life very recently. I had a friend loan me the first 5 seasons on the DVD. What a funny show. Probably my full time favorite is Dr. Cox. He's pretty much my hero. Favorite episodes would include: S05E09 'My Half Acre', the episode when Turk dances to Poison. This was a most excellent episode. Also, S03E04 'My Lucky Day' was incredibly funny due to my part time favorite, Janitor. JD plays a joke on Janitor by telling him a riddle, but it backfires with "It's a riddle. Two guys destroyed your bike with a crobar and a bat. One of em wasn't me." Also, the DVD commentary between John C. McGinley and Neil Flynn is pretty good.

Maybe more later.

The Night I Became A Vampire

2007-01-23T20:32:00.000-08:00

Prologue: I wrote this my first year in college as a free writing assignment. I was accused of plagiarizing it by my professor. My honesty was insulted, however, it was a bit encouraging for the writer in me. The written text has not been altered or changed since that day I turned it in, October 5th, 2003. Here it is, in it's entirety.

05 Oct 03

The Night I Became a Vampire

It was not yet three years after we lost the colonies in the Americas. The majority of what my father had left me was invested in a Virginia plantation, though I had never left England. During the Rebellion, I lost it all. It was burned to the ground. My English home, just outside Thurnham, was but a day’s ride from Lancaster. It sat atop a lush rolling hill, overlooking a small cemetery two miles or so in the distance. The cemetery was ancient, becoming more visible each day as the leaves fell off the trees surrounding it. Some members of the Lancaster Royal Family lay here, cold and stale. My father was buried here on the first day of 1774.

I sat in a courtroom all day, defending a client accused of stealing chickens. I knew he had done it, he’d told me so. The judge wasn’t very sympathetic of him. I remember the way he gazed at me from under his white wig. The great arbitrator was searching, as I was, for the answer as to why I went on. More than thirty years had passed since the departure of my loving parents, whom he knew. They didn’t live to see me marry, or their grandchildren born. I shed a tear for them every day.

On my ride home that evening, a deep fog filled the air around me. I trusted my horse knew the way, and thought nothing of the road out of town. I couldn’t keep at bay the thought of the coming season. I wondered if I would have enough firewood to last winter. I imagined that things could be worse, but I couldn’t visualize how. Alice and I just added another hungry mouth to the family. Martha was almost five months now, as old as Robert when we lost him. She had begun eating solid food. Our other six kids were very thin. We have very little income since losing the plantation, and bread was scarce. I knew Alice would cry once she heard I lost another case.

I could look no further than my horse’s ears. I pat him, and his ears perked just as I told him he was a good horse. Just then, the fog cleared some. Contradictory to my previous remark, I realized that we were in the middle of the cemetery. I pulled at the moist reins. We had gone at least a few miles out of the way, I figured. When my eyes began to search around, they almost immediately locked on a headstone reading ROBERT CLARKE, 1686 – 1743. Shocked as I was, I didn’t move. I just stared, gazing into each letter of my father’s name. Nearly twenty years have gone by since I laid my eyes on this very stone, the layers of green moss indicating that I may have been the last person to wipe it clean. My mother lie next to him.

My horse began to breathe more noticeably, kicking his hoof. He didn’t like it here. The atmosphere denoted his nervousness, making me feel a bit uncanny as dusk neared. I thought I heard the gravel churn a short distance away. Startled, I immediately turned my body to face my back left side. My eyes scanned the area, detecting nothing. I let down my guard, sighing with relief. I could smell pleasing the scent of the freshly fallen leaves in the air. I took one last glance at my parents’ graves, touched my chest four times and perked my back up straight. It was time I got home. Just as I squeezed my thighs, I heard six footsteps right ahead of me. They were very close together, something was running. At me. Straight at me. I froze with fear, a cold chill running down my spine. With my eyes popping out of my head, they stopped, ten or twelve feet in front of me. My jaw dropped, and just as it did, something grabbed me right off my horse. I thought it was a man. It was him running at me, and jumping at me. He wrapped but one arm around me when he hit me, and I joined him in flying through the air. And in landing on the ground, right against a sarcophagus. We nearly knocked the lid from it, remembering nothing thereafter for I was knocked unconscious…

Copyright 2007, Joseph R. Holod. You may link to this copy of the work, all other rights reserved.

eBay is a great thing... for Scam Artists

2007-01-04T23:55:00.000-08:00

I need to do a little venting. I've been trying to sell a laptop on eBay now. It just got relisted for the second time tonight.

First things first. eBay is a wonderful thing. It drew thousands of people to the internet whom would otherwise never touch a computer. It has transformed modern-day economics the way the internet eventually would. Let's face it, without eBay, buying and selling things on the internet would be very difficult. eBay has made virtual storeplaces something that anyone can do, whereas without eBay, PayPal and their clones, even an above average computer user/business person would have many discouraging hurdles in the way.

My problem with eBay is that right now, there are hundreds and possibly thousands of scam artists on there. I never even realized it, until last week. In the item description of the laptop I'm selling, I very specifically state that there is NO international shipping. 50 states only. I included the 'Buy It Now' option in there so that maybe I could make some extra bucks off someone who wants the thing in a quick hurry - half the reason the option even exists! A couple days after I list the item, I get some emails from this goon. It says, "Hi, I'm blah blah. I live in the UK but I'm in France on business right now. I bought this laptop for my Grandson in Nigeria. Would you ship it to him?"

Being naive, I said sure. As soon as I receive payment. Shipping will be this much extra. The next day I got this email from PayPal saying that I received payment from this goon, and here's the mailing address. Looked fishy, so I logged into PayPal (something everyone should do to check, even if you sold a $5 pair of sunglasses to your best friend). Didn't say anything about that payment whatsoever.

Here's what they do: They send you an email from PayPal (not even from a real paypal address). It says , "Hi. This is paypal. We're holding funds for this goon. As soon as you send us (paypal) the tracking information for this item, you'll get the funds." As far as I know, paypal doesn't even DO that.

So, that's a roadblock to be selling this item. I really need the money from it, like, last month. I relisted the Item, and the same thing happened. AGAIN. This time, instead of a brand new eBay user, it was from someone who had a rating of 40 or so, and they had 100% feedback. Their profile said they were in the US. The feedback comments for the user went back to 2002. So what I basically think happened, is, some goon from wherever hijacked this person's eBay account. Is that terrible, or what? A person who worked real hard to keep a 100% feedback rating, and some foreign phisher hacker jerk decides to exploit it.

eBay sellers beware. Be sure to use the 'Block Users...' options to protect yourself. If you receive any emails from eBay or PayPal then make sure that you open your browser, type in ebay.com, and paypal.com, and check things for yourselves. Also, maybe not including a 'Buy It Now' option could help as well.

eBay, you need to do something about this.

So I relisted the item a 2nd time, and found that you can block buyers not from places you ship. Clicked that on! I also removed the Buy It Now option.

Trying to sell this item coast me $22 the first time and $22 the second time. I owe eBay money because they think I actually sold the item and received payment for it.

To my Baby

2006-12-31T01:11:00.001-08:00

I love you baby,
More than the sun.
I love you baby,
'Cuz you're my hunny bun.

You're so sweet, baby,
Sweeter than ice cream.
You're so sweet, baby,
It's better than a dream.

You're my Angel, baby,
Mine to Love and respect.
You're my Angel, baby,
Mine to serve and protect.

I don't know what I'd do without you, baby,
And all of the magical times we've spent.
I don't know what I'd do without you, baby,
By the way, I plan to help with rent. ;)

I don't know how you stand me, baby,
How I want to stay fun and free.
I don't know how you stand me, baby,
But that's how I always want to be.

Thanks for stickin' it through, baby,
I know this winter's been tough.
Thanks for stickin' it through, baby,
This time next year we should have our own stuff.

I wanna be with you forever, baby,
Every day of every year.
I wanna be with you forever, baby,
Right down to the very last tear.

I Love You, Melissa

Ponderings... or, lack thereof

2006-12-29T00:55:00.000-08:00

Throughout my day I spend a lot of time on my own, working, driving, or whichever else. I ponder a lot, about dumb little stuff. A lot of the time I say to myself, wow, I wish I can remember this later on today. Maybe if I can remember it I can transform a pondering into an idea.

The human mind is very interesting. The thought process is such a tangled web. Ever have an idea? How did you come up with the idea? What thoughts or events led up to it?

"Whoa! That sign I just drove past kind of reminds me of that Holy Grail movie."

"I wonder if there really is Holy Grail."

"I remember in The Da Vinci Code movie the part with the Last Supper, they pointed out that there was no cup on the table in the Last Supper painting."

"I wonder what they would have drank at the last supper had they used cups for every person."

"Maybe there were some cups there and Da Vince just didn't paint them. How could he know one way or the other?"

"If I painted it, and I used cups, I would paint on that looks sorta like the 'Not tonight, it's bowling night' mug as a joke. That'd be funny."

"Oh, no! I left the coffee pot on."

Should thought processes make sense? Is there a correct way to think as a means to blossom your thoughts into better, fuller ideas? I'm sure there's some kind of Freud stuff about all that. Makes one ponder...

Christmas and thereafter

2006-12-27T22:46:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas went well. We sent Christmas Eve at a friend's place. It was real fun.

We've been having a lot of bad luck lately with cars. I've decided that the most reliable form of transportation here in the winter is dog team. They don't break down. It doesn't matter how cold it is, they always start - you don't even need to plug them in all night and jump-start them in the morning. They don't let you down. They don't just run out of gas. They definitly don't get stuck. They don't need oil changes, they don't blow headlights, and they don't grind gears. Their transmissions don't blow. They get you to where you need to go, dependably. All they need is love.

2006-12-22T18:51:00.000-08:00

So I decided to update today agian. Today we tried to plan a trip down to Skagway to take care of some business, but it's next to impossible to rent a big pickup truck. It's as if F-250's and bigger don't even exist to rent! Makes me want to start a truck rental company that rents out trucks rigged for towing.

Anyway, I went over and scooped the dog yard today and straightened things out. Tomorrow we'll be running some teams. This is the second day I haven't run - I'm really starting to feel like a fish out of water! I BELONG on the runners behind that sled. I spent some time with Stormy's puppies while I was over there. They look just like their dad and grandpa! They're around 4 or 5 weeks old now and are beginning to wander around their pen some. I bet the two boys end up 65 pounds and the girl maybe 55.

I've really been meaning to get a watch for the trail. I'm always wearing my watch, a small analog model that velcroes on. When I'm out with a team it's a real inconvenience to pull down my glove and lift up my sleeve right in front of my face just to glace at the time, it's not worth it. In the past I've tried wearing my stopwatch around my neck, but that gets in the way any time I need to bend over for anything at all. It's clunky and can become caught on things. So today I sewed a piece of 3/4" wide breaded elastic band into a big loop. I took the cord off the stopwatch, and popped off the back cover. I got two small screws with bolts and bolted the stopwatch to the elastic band. It should fit perfectly over all my winter gear so that I can wear it near the middle of my forearm. It'll be nice being able to use a stopwatch, too, as opposed to using a regular watch that only tells time. It seems pretty sturdy, so hopefully it doesn't fall apart. I'll only be wearing it on the trail and not in the yard so that should ensure it'll last.

My first blog entry!

2006-12-22T02:21:00.000-08:00

There are a lot of reasons that I've decided to start a blog. I originally wanted to start a journal, as a way to keep track of things that happen to me in life, and as a way for me to improve my writing skills. A blog enables me to not loose the things that I write, and it's centralized so I can access it anywhere. I didn't want to use myspace to blog, I don't want anybody why happens to be my myspace friend reading my blogs. I don't plan on writing about things that I want to hide, I'd just like to keep things separate. Myspace is about sharing pictures, about staying in touch with friends and family that you don't see much, and lately it's about spam.

I plan on writing about a log of different things, as I have many, many interests. I'm a computer repair technician/tech geek. and a linux user by practice. With software, if it isn't free, I pretty much don't use it. I'll be writing a lot about the open-source world of software, something that most people aren't even aware of. I'll tell people that there is no adware and spyware, and no viruses in linux. There's almost no popups. And I'll write about how easy it is to set up and use. You'll definitly be hearing about microsoft and how evil they are in so many ways.

I like tech gadgets. I spent my night looking at gps-enabled watches. I think I might get one next summer. There's something about little gadgets that I really like.

I live in Alaska with my girlfriend of 2 years and our dog, a sled-dog-who-couldn't-quite-make-it. They're both a lot of fun. I spend my last 2 summers in Skagway, where I worked on a glacier doing sled dog tours to the cruise ship passengers who roll (sail?) through Skagway. Last winter I went home to Michigan, where I became obsessed with dogs to begin with. There's just not enough snow down there to go along with all the ignorant, self centered city slickers that I grew up around. There were a lot of reasons for me to move here. I wanted to learn more about the sport of dog mushing. I wanted to learn another way of life (one involving out houses, wood stoves and block heaters, and dog trucks every 5th truck on the highway). I wanted to come to a place where I could really be away from people that I know I can rely on so that I become more self-reliant. I wanted to do my own thing. I really wanted to find out what really is important in life. I'm not even 22 yet, so I know I have a lot to learn. But the things that are important back home no longer even matter here at all. People don't care what kind of car you drive, or what kind of money you have, or where you're from. I was always the guy who judged a person by how he treated people, instead of whether or not his home is worth $500,000 or not. Society clouds peoples perception or reality. So does advertising. I've been a victim just as everyone else has, and I don't like it.

I don't plan to ramble much.

I'll probably update this quite a bit. I'm not sure if I'll mess around with pictures or not (that's why myspace is for) but I may drop the occasional link here and there.

It's funny because I've written this as if it were to an audience. If you actually have read this, can you tell me?